product description:
This 1981 filmed version of the highly successful Broadway play
The Magic Show brings magical illusions as well as engaging music to the story of a talented young magician Doug (Doug Henning) using his magic for "good" over the villainous "evil" magic performed by the dastardly Van Zyskind. The music and magic presented here highlight a dazzling display of wizardry by Doug Henning, who triumphs in the end to the delight of all. This is the only version of one of Broadway s most beloved and longest-running musicals and captures the legendary talents of Doug Henning, Anita Morris, and Didi Conn at their best. 105 minutes.The late Doug Henning was a cheerful pop-culture icon of the 1970s. His chipmunk grin and dangling hair become as ubiquitous as the Farrah Fawcett bathing-suit poster. The Canadian magician s fame was sealed with
The Magic Show, a Broadway musical that ran for more than four years. This 1981 filmed version of a live Toronto stage production is not exactly the original show. Some of Henning s magic routines were different, and songwriter Stephen Schwartz replaced a couple of songs with new numbers (which Schwartz has claimed he prefers to the originals, though die-hard fans of the original Broadway cast recording may demur). Schwartz, whose work has included excursions into both New and Old Testaments (
Godspell and the animated film
The Prince of Egypt, respectively), is in a bouncy
Godspell mode here, with the clever songs boosting the tired dialogue. The show is essentially an old-fashioned, mild send-up comedy/melodrama serving as an excuse for Henning s magic acts. The supporting players handle most of the heavy lifting of song and dance, including red-headed vixen (and future star) Anita Morris, who gets sawed in half and turned into a lion. Henning lends his likable personality and saves his energy for the big-time tricks. As is almost always true of magic, the filmed version lacks the you-are-there charge of a live show, but at least this production captures Henning s style and spirit: his high-pitched "Whoo!" and hippy-dippy rainbow outfits are ingratiating in a smiley-face way.
--Robert Horton
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